A Miko's Heart
by Fire Inu Princess
Summary: Hundreds of years ago, Naruto had been sealed away for a crime he hadn't committed. Now he is set free and he must take down the demons that had been responsible for his sealing but what does it have to do with this teenagers heart? He didn't know and knew that he would be in for more than he had bargained for.
1. The Seal

_For as long as I could remember, I have dedicated my life to protect humans. Why I say humans? Well, I'm not human; I'm a Fox Demon, a guardian if you will… I mostly protect the villages that don't have a priestess, for during these times, demons and humans were always, at war. I only protected the villages until a priestess was sent to reside in the village or, until the demons no longer wished to attack that village. I know that I cannot protect everyone, but it doesn't stop me from trying to protect people._

_Yet, lately there have been more and more attacks… mostly, on this one village where it was rumoured to have one of the most powerful priestesses known to human and demon kind. She had come from a clan that specialized in sacred energy and a unique fighting style that not many people knew of. It shouldn't be possible, but I knew that I had to stop them… but what I hadn't known, was that I sealed my own fate…_

It was a beautiful day in the forest; a young looking man was walking through the trees. It was such a peaceful day, why would he want to ruin it. Stopping for a brief moment, the young man closed his blue eyes as he felt the wind blowing through his long blonde hair. His hair was styled in a spiky way, yet the hair that he had pulled back in a black hair tie was straight. He never understood why that was though; he also didn't care, just like he didn't care if his ponytail was red, instead of blonde.

His clothes were that of a cheap looking kimono. The jacket was orange yet the sleeves were black with dancing orange flames along the sleeves. The umanori hakama of his kimono was black. He wore a pair of straw sandals, something mostly to keep the stones from cutting his feet. Sure, he healed fast but it still hurt like hell. Next, were the gloves that covered his palms and the back of his hands, though the cloth only wrapped around his middle fingers and made their way up his arms just ending past his elbows. On his chest, were swirls the colour of crimson, a sign that he can use wind to do his bidding if he so chose to. From what you can see of his hands, there were faint red markings that resembled flames, though what the other markings covered, one couldn't really tell unless he were to remove his gloves. He was a rare demon indeed, one that can control fire and wind at his call among other abilities.

The wind rushed at the young man, his long hair flowed out behind him, as did his many nine orange fox tails. All of which, were tipped black. Opening his eyes, the spiky haired man thought he heard something, his ears twitching from the sounds of something moving through the forest. Growling, his eyes turned blood red, his pupils turning into slits and the thin-like whisker marks on his cheeks thickened. "Who's there?" growled out the young man, he wasn't going to allow anyone to attack him like this; sneak attacks were the coward's way out.

Acting quickly, the young man reached for the sword at his waist, his hand wrapping itself around the orange hilt and pulled out a long sword, the blade red as crimson, the guard of the sword sharpened out and pointing upward, almost looking like fangs. He narrowed his eyes as he looked toward the shaking bushes; the scent of a demon was making its way toward him. "I know you are there, do not make me kill you."

Soon, coming out of the bushes was a short person… a little girl. Frowning a little, the young man put his sword away and made his way over to the little girl. She had short brown hair, wearing a floral pattern kimono. It seemed a bit fancy, was she from some rich family or something? Shaking his head, the young man's eyes returned to being their ocean blue, and the whisker marks thinned out to simple lines on his cheeks, then he knelt in front of the little girl as he asked "are you okay?"

The little brown haired girl lifted her head, and stared at Naruto with a pair of white eyes. Was she blind? The little girl sniffled as she said "I… I want my mommy…" She had to be young… her small frail looking body told him that she had to be at least four. The little girl looked up at the man before her a little more before she yelped and tried to get away. "Demon! Demons are mean!" shouted the little girl.

"I'm not mean. I'm a demon yes but I'm not a mean one." He said in soothing words, hoping to calm down the little girl. Hm… how could he convince her that he wasn't going to hurt her? It would be hard to prove that for, demons are cruel by nature, though he wasn't. Waving his tails out behind him, the young man had his tails hovering in front of the little girl as he said "here, would you like to pet my tails?" The little girl blinked her white eyes and looked up at him in shock. She looked nervous, like something bad would happen to her if she were to touch his tails. Giving her a soft yet gentle smile, he said "it's okay, watch." He gently laid his tail against the grass before lifting it back up, the grass still in perfect shape. "See? Living things, grass, trees, or people won't be in danger from touching my fur."

The little girl slowly reached out for the demon's tail, her little hand shaking like crazy before her fingers carefully touched his fur. She smiled a little before starting to pet one of his many tails and started to giggle. It seemed that she had started to cheer up, that was something so now all he had to do was ask where she was from and take her home.

Soon, she wrapped her tiny arms around his tail and started to nuzzle it while giggling. The demon couldn't help but smile at her before he carefully lifted the little girl in his arms. "My name is Naruto, what about you?" said Naruto with a bright smile on his face, though careful not to show his fangs. The little girl blinked up at Naruto for a moment before tilting her head. Her skin was a little pale; it made the fox demon wonder just when was the last time she had anything to eat.

"Hana…" said the little girl, her voice sounded just as frail as she looked. Hm… he would have to get her something to eat… Hana yawned softly and started to lay her head against his chest as she started to rub her eyes. It was rather amazing that she would warm up to him this quickly just by touching his tail. Shaking his head, Naruto bounced the little girl a bit in his arms as he asked her where her home was. "I live in the Sacred Village…" That was the village with that powerful clan… though that would be at least a day's journey.

"I'll take you home Hana." Whispered Naruto before he started to walk on toward the Sacred Village. It was a rather odd name for sure, though he figured that they're too busy with their training to come up with a better name. Shaking his head, the young man kept on walking, knowing that he would have to be careful when it comes to human villages. There were villages that knew of him, a demon that would rather protect humans than to kill them, but there were still the odd village or so that didn't think it was possible or had only thought it was just a stupid story to give them a false sense of security.

What bothered him right now though, was how Hana ended up all the way out here. It just didn't make any kind of sense to him. In fact, it was rather odd, no, strange for a little girl from the Sacred Village to have been that far away from her home in the first place.

Looking down at the little girl in his arms, the young man knew that it would be a little difficult to get her home since her village didn't really speak to demons. In fact, this little girl was the only one from that village to have real contact with demons, or at least a nice one. Breathing deeply, Naruto looked up at the sky as he wondered what it would be like to see that village. Would it be like every other village he had gone to see, or would it be more than that? He couldn't really say, though it did have him interested in knowing what the place was.

Hm… as soon as the sun was going to set, he would have to set up camp, he knew that it would be a while until they had reached the village. Or, at least they wouldn't reach it until tomorrow at least. Sighing softly, the young man knew that it would be difficult for him to tend to a human child, since after all, he didn't know what all humans needed, sure he had a way to find out but he wasn't going to do it, not with a little girl. It was going to be hard enough as it was just trying to learn all of this stuff on his own… and he hated it when he still did not understand something…

"If it gets too complicated for me… I'll have to do it…" he whispered softly before he shifted Hana and placed her on his back, her arms around his neck and him holding her legs. Though to make sure that she would stay warm, Naruto wrapped his tails around the little girl and started to hum a soft song that he remembered his mother singing to him when he was young. Well, young looking in the human sense… hell, to them, he would look like he was seventeen at the least…

Letting out a soft sigh, Naruto found it rather odd, for what a human thinks is old, is young for a demon. It is rather confusing, if he could live within a human village, though he knew that it wouldn't be possible, for humans could never accept a demon to live in their village. Or even near their families. It would only become more difficult for him later on in his never ending life. Closing his eyes for a moment, Naruto knew that life was only going to become more difficult as time passed him by, as humans lived, grew older and passed on from this world to the next.

Shaking his head, the young demon knew that he would have to forget about his troubles for now. Right now, he would have to deal with other problems that he would have to live by. Yawning loudly, Naruto hoped that he didn't wake up Hana, not wanting to wake up the little girl. He had to admit, she was adorable, she could easily break a few hearts when she's older though… he wondered if she would still fear demons when she was older, or if he had opened up her heart to the possibilities of there being good demons out there like him.

That would be a dream world that was for sure… for a world that demons and humans could live together in peace and harmony. That was a world that he wanted to work towards… he wanted that world to be possible, a world that his parents wanted before they were killed. Yes, they had been killed off by humans but it still did not change his mind about humans. Just like how there were both good and bad demons, there were both good and bad humans. It wasn't their fault and he had learned to accept that. Breathing deeply, the young man just kept on walking through the forest.

* * *

It had been a tough night that was for sure. Though it was the end result that mattered. Soon, Naruto would be able to take Hana to her home and she would be able to live her life the way she wanted. Yet, he hoped that her experience with him would open her heart all the more to the possibility of humans and demons being able to live in peace. Or was that just wishful thinking? Even in his long, almost never ending life it may never happen, demons and humans may never live in peace but there would be some differences and he would just have to learn to accept that, that's all.

Breathing deeply the young man looked down at his side, smiling at the little girl as he held her little hand in his. It was rather amazing that she was so happy, and so open around him. She spoke about her life in the village, about her family and about the head priestess. Such as her power and her abilities. It was something he wished that he didn't know about though he knew that it would be something that he would just have to smile about. After all, Hana was just a little girl and she didn't know any better yet.

"Naruto, will you live in the village?" asked Hana, her white eyes looking up at him with innocents. He couldn't help but give her a soft smile, it was sad that he couldn't stay. There was just no way that they would allow him, a demon, to live in the village. It just didn't seem possible for him and he knew that, he also had learned to accept that at the time. Though it would also be hard for him to just leave Hana, even if he had only protected her, known her, for a day at the most…

Shaking his head, the young man calmly said "sorry, but I won't be able to stay here in the village… They won't accept me there like you would Hana. Besides, I'm a traveling swordsman… I travel to village to village to help people. I cannot just 'settle' down in a place if I am not needed or wanted even for a second." Hana frowned at him that was something that he never wanted to do, he never wanted to upset Hana but it was, sadly the truth. He couldn't stay with her and be her protector, even if it was in his nature because he was once a guardian for a village but that village had burned down, protecting people was just in his nature, and it was what he wanted to do if that made sense.

Looking ahead, Naruto saw a small hill, and the scents of humans were coming from the other side. He just knew that on the other side of the hill, was Hana's village. Her home… after today he wouldn't see the little girl though he would just be happy knowing that she was safe. Breathing deeply, Naruto found it hard to believe that he had grown attached to her… he's only looked after her for a day and yet he cared deeply about her, though… not like he would if he had cared for a woman…

Closing his eyes for a brief moment, Naruto started to walk up the hill. "Naruto…? Can I ask you something?" asked Hana. Turning toward her, the blonde and red haired demon wondered what she would want to ask now; it seemed rather odd that she would have another question before she would be returned to her home. "What are these weird markings?" asked the little girl, pointing to the markings on his chest and the tiny bit of the revealed markings on his hands.

"They show people that I have power over fire and wind. The markings on my chest represent wind. While the markings on my hands show that I can control fire. Though, I have better control over wind than fire." Naruto explained with a chuckle. It was cute that she had been curious about his markings, sure, most demons like him, or at least the ones that can retain a human form, would have special markings that showed their rank or at least their powers. Different markings represented different markings or rank… it did get confusing but it didn't matter all that much, he didn't really care about his rank.

Hana stared with wide eyes only to smile brightly. It was nice to see that she at least liked his answer. Though it made him wonder if he had spoken too much about his markings… for, he's never told anyone about his markings or his abilities. To others, it was just a way to tell who he was because of those markings… though he also hoped that this knowledge didn't get Hana in trouble, it was bad enough that she would have just spent time with him though he would just have to be very careful when he brought her home.

"Hana, what do you plan to do when you go home?" asked the young looking man.

"I would go back to living with the main family… my mother and father was killed… so the main family looked after me." Hana whispered softly, this had caused Naruto to look down at her with a frown. She was an orphan? In a way, she was like him, someone who had lost their parents at such a young and tender age. Giving her a soft smile, Naruto ruffled her hair as he told her that if she ever needed him, he would come and try to help her in any way he could. If it was within his power, then he would do whatever he could to cheer her up or to help her.

Suddenly, there was a scream before it had suddenly been cut short. In fact, the scream almost sounded like they were gargling on water or something… no, something thicker. Narrowing his eyes, the young man turned to Hana as he told her to go and hide. _'I can't allow her to see this… I just can't…'_ thought the young man before he ran up the hill, sword drawn and ready to fight. He would have to do what he could to help them though it would be a surprise that they would need the help in the first place since, after all, they were trained to fight and kill demons.

Growling, Naruto's eyes bled red as he rushed over the hill and growled at the sight he saw. It seemed that there was some kind of group of humans, trying to get into the village for protection. He could tell for the two guards were trying to fight the demons with what they could do, it seemed that they were weaker members of the clan to tend to the gate. Shaking his head, the young man rushed forward, his tails impaling the demons as he let out a soft growl. "Get them inside, I'll deal with the demons." Growled out Naruto, he didn't want them to be in the way, he had to make sure that they were safe and he couldn't do that while fighting.

Standing before him was just one demon; on the ground of course were a few dozen dead humans. Humans that hadn't been able to get away from the demon in time… and lost their lives in the process. It was a terrible thing to go through though Naruto knew that he couldn't let their deaths be in vain. The demon standing before him looked like a reptile. Had golden eyes with slitted pupils, his skin was green scales and he wore a worn and torn green kimono that didn't cover his chest, arms or legs very well. His long tail swayed from side to side as his thin tongue hung low but curled as if tasting the air.

"A fox demon hm… rare indeed. Thought the last ones died out hundreds of years ago by humans." Hissed the lizard demon.

"No, I still live and I will protect these humans no matter the cost!" shouted Naruto as he held onto his sword tightly in his hands. So tight in fact, that his knuckles turned white. The demon swung his claws at the blonde haired demon, only for it to be blocked by the crimson blade that Naruto carried with him. Narrowing his eyes, Naruto removed his left hand from the hilt of the blade, and thrust out his palm letting out gusts of wind, allowing the air to slice through the demon's flesh. Blood oozed from the opened wounds causing the demon to hiss and growl in pain and anger.

The demon smirked for a moment, as if he had some kind of plan forming in his mind. Whatever it was, Naruto didn't care. All he knew was that he had to kill this demon now before anything else happened or before anyone else got hurt. Growling, Naruto shoved the demon back and slipping his sword back into its sheath before thrusting his palms out and release flames hoping to set the demon ablaze. Yet, it seemed that the demon's skin was fire proof, for it didn't even burn him.

Growling, Naruto pulled out his sword again and created blades of wind to swirl around the crimson blade, he knew that he would have to take this demon down quickly if he wanted the villagers to be safe. He had to make sure that they would always be safe, that he could bring that much needed peace. Sure, he would try to deal with this peacefully, but when there are too many humans around, a demon could easily lose themselves to their bloodlust, and this demon had the aura of death around him. That was all he wanted, was to kill and eat humans.

Breathing deeply, Naruto rushed forward and swung his sword at the demon, slashing at his chest and more blood just gushed out like that of a stream, and splattering on Naruto's clothes, and skin. _'Damn demon, I'll need a nice hot spring to clean myself up.'_ thought the young man as he tried to take down the demon.

"You cannot stop this war between demons and humans. Why not join us?" said the demon. What the hell did he mean by 'us'? Was there more of them or was there someone controlling them? Like a puppet and the puppet master? "My master would be very pleased to have a warrior such as yourself to join us, so why not come and be on our side fox demon?" asked the snake demon.

"Sorry, but I would rather be on the humans side. Something about them not killing because they enjoy it brings meaning." Naruto calmly said before he jumped in the air and swung the blade downward only for the demon to block the strike with his arm. Naruto blinked in shock as the demon's arm came clean off. Blood just falling like that of a waterfall. It made the young demon a little sick but he would have to hurry up and kill this thing then dispose of the body after this whole thing… and then, he would do some hunting after he was sure that Hana would be looked after.

"Well, I will just have to do the rest of my job. You are, after all in the way of my master's plans… and we need you either on our side, or out of the way. I would gladly, give up my own life, just to see that happen; at least… part of my life…" He said with a smirk before rushing to Naruto and wrapped his arms around him before a loud bang echoed through the area.

The demon had exploded, Naruto of course was caught in the blast and he was not pleased. Growling, he looked himself over and saw that he was covered in the demon's blood. His clothes were a little torn and burned from the blast of the demon bombing himself to take both himself and Naruto out though he knew that it would be better for the demon to have been taken out then and there… of course, he would have preferred a cleaner way to kill the demon though at least everyone would be safe now…

"Demon!" shouted a new voice, causing Naruto to turn around and blinked in confusion. Coming toward him was a woman with long flowing brown hair, pale eyes much like Hana's though it had a hint of lavender in their depths. He couldn't help but wonder who she was, though he also saw, that she wore simple priestess robes, though instead of the usual red and white, the top was light lavender while the bottoms were a sky blue. "You dare to kill the innocent people of this village or the soon to be villagers." Whoa, whoa! She thought he killed the villagers?!

"Look lady, I just saved the villagers. I even brought back one of the children that had been taken from here and looked after her until I could bring her home." Said Naruto as he put his sword back, he knew that he would have to explain this a little better, though the woman's eyes shined with her anger, she wasn't going to buy what it was he was selling. Great, she wasn't going to listen to him; he would just have to explain it a bit better now wasn't he? "The demon was a lizard demon; it tried to get me to join him because I was powerful and had tried to take me out. The only blood on me is the demon's blood. No human's blood stains my body."

"Only a demon can lie." Shouted the priestess before she held out a vase. What the hell was she going to do with that thing? There was no way a vase could take him down; he was a demon for crying out loud. "For your crimes, I will make sure that you spend the rest of your immortal life in a prison. Death is too good for you… you must suffer for your crimes." Soon, the woman had started to mumble something under her breath. Naruto was about to walk away until he felt his whole body freeze. What the?!

Gritting his teeth, the young man tried to move, his arms and legs felt like they were encased in ice, only that he wasn't cold. He tried to move his arms, tried to grab his sword so he could slice through whatever powers were around him though it seemed that even that was useless. "A demon, is a demon… they can never change and you shall face your crimes for all eternity." Whispered the woman before she had gone back to her chant…

The vase that she held in her hands, was a large vase, it was lavender with swirls of blue, gold, and crimson. In a way, they made Naruto think of waves and wind. He knew that he had to stop this, that he had to break free before it was too late! Growling, Naruto was thankful that his mouth still worked. "I didn't kill them! I would never kill humans, I would only want to protect them!" shouted Naruto, his eyes tightly shut as he kept on trying to break free of the spell, but even he cannot break a sacred spell like this.

"Seal the demon!" chanted some of the villagers that came. Why did they want to seal him away? Sure they thought that he killed the villagers but why won't they see his side of the story? Turning his head, the only other part of him that can move, Naruto saw Hana rushing toward her. He saw that she was crying, calling out to him. Telling the priestess that he was a good demon, that he had tried to save the villagers and that he had saved her from the forest and tried to bring her home. Though it seemed that no matter what, they would not hear her words.

"Hana stay back! They won't listen to you!" shouted Naruto; he felt his body starting to be pulled into the vase. He gave the young girl a soft and gentle smile before he closed his eyes. He knew that he couldn't fight this, but prayed that one day; he would be able to be free of this prison. "Hana, I want you to live a long and prosperous life. I want you to treasure everything you have in life for one day, you will find happiness and I just know that humans and demons can live in peace… I hope you always remember that."

Turning to the priestess, Naruto narrowed his eyes as he let out a soft growl. He wanted to make sure that this woman knew just what it was that she was doing. "One day, demons will come to hurt you all, and the only one that could have helped you, you are sealing away for crimes that I have not committed. I was the fox protector and now… you are forever sealing me away. I hope, you live a peaceful life for that peace will shatter when you least expect it to." With that said, Naruto felt his body turn into vapour, and flow into the vase. Now, he was to live his immortal life in this place, never to see sun, never to see the sky, or to smell the fresh air ever again…

Though he hoped that the humans can regain peace and that the demons will leave them all alone… but would that wish ever come true, or would it all be for nothing?


	2. The Crimson Fox

_When I woke up that morning, I thought it was going to be an everyday. It was just something that I always felt when I would wake up in the morning and do the usual routine. Get up, shower, change, brush my hair and teeth then go eat before leaving to walk to school. I didn't think that a simple school assignment would have lead me to finding out something about a certain object being true…_

_And to think, I always thought that history class was pointless…_

Sitting in class, a young woman with long blue hair looked up at her teacher. Her white eyes with a hint of lavender stared at her teacher as she listened to him go on and on about a demon that had lived in Japan over six hundred years ago. She didn't remember the full story though she had heard about some of it from her father, that it was her ancestor that had sealed away the demon though she didn't really like the story all that much.

Her tired looking eyes just stared at her teacher, his white hair poking out from behind his book though she could also faintly make out the headband that she remembered covered his left eye and the mask that he used to cover half of his face. It was something that she never really did understand what was going on with that though she didn't really bother to ask him since after all, it wasn't any of her business. Letting out a soft sigh, the young woman looked out the window as she wondered if there was really a point in history, to her of course there wasn't much of a point. She hated history, hated it with a passion…

"Hinata Hyuuga, since this part of the chapter is about your ancestor, would you please read it?" asked the teacher.

Looking up, Hinata frowned a little before letting out a soft sigh and sat up and stood by her desk before holding the book in her hands. Looking over the chapter, she saw the picture, in the picture was a handsome man with long hair, on his head his hair was blonde and spiky, while the hair in the ponytail was a deep crimson. His eyes were blue, tanned skin and three whisker marks on his cheeks. His robes were orange and black though she saw that it suited him just fine. If it wasn't for the fox ears and nine tails behind him, she would have thought he was a human…

"Long ago, there was a savage demon known as 'The Crimson Fox'. He had gone to the Sacred Village of the Hyuuga Clan, and slaughtered many humans alike, and bewitched a little girl… The demon had slaughtered everyone that had tried to go within the village for protection though never had a chance to make it past the gates for The Crimson Fox had killed them without a purpose but for his own desires." Read Hinata, not really sure if this was even history or if it was just a story that someone made up both for history and for her clan. "The priestess of the Sacred Village wanted to keep her people safe and did the only thing that she could do, and that was to use her own life energy to seal the demon away forever. The demon's last words were 'I hope, you live a peaceful life for that peace will shatter when you least expect it to.'" Strange, why did it seem like he was foreseeing some kind of calamity happening because he was being sealed away?

"Good Hinata, as you have heard, the Crimson Fox was a deadly demon that roamed the world killing humans for his own enjoyment. No one knew the reason for it though. Some say that he had lost his mind for he was once a peaceful demon, but had turned to darkness and started to slaughter the innocent for his own personal gain." Said the teacher as he slowly lowered the book. Turning to Hinata, the teacher calmly said "and it was thanks to Hinata's ancestor that the Crimson Fox had been sealed away for all eternity."

Hinata sighed softly before taking her seat. Why was it that people mentioned about how great her family was? Yes, they were all people with sacred powers, that was something that she had been told over and over again and yes, she was to take over one day but… _'I hate hearing about how great my family is…'_ thought Hinata with a sad sigh before looking back up at her teacher.

"Okay class, before we're done for the day, I'd like to say that for tomorrow's class, I want you all to bring one thing that has some kind of historic event or even just being historic. Such as where it came from and how old you believe it to be."

"Yes Mr. Hatake…" said everyone in the class before they heard the bell ring. The only thing students really looked forward to was to hear that bell ring and head on home. Breathing deeply, the young woman grabbed her bag and knew that right now she would just have to head on home and look for something that she could bring for class tomorrow, though she wasn't sure what it could be that she would be able to bring since there were so many artifacts in her home that no one knew about.

This was something that her family wanted to keep that way for some strange yet unknown reason… She never really understood the reason for it though she didn't really bother with what it was that her parents wanted to keep secret from the world.

Shaking her head, the young woman held her bag in her left hand and started to walk on by, her black skirt brushed her thighs as she walked, the soft clicking of her shoes hitting the floor echoed through the halls. Her short sleeved white shirt just half way down her arms, the sleeves had a leaf symbol with a swirl in the center. Her black tie swayed in the breeze from the open windows as she walked, the only thing she didn't like about her outfit, was her long black socks. They didn't stay up, they kept falling and it annoyed her to no end.

Looking out the window, the young woman wondered if there would be anything interesting for her… Everything was just the same thing day after day and it just became boring. The only thing she ever looked forward to was baking or spending time with her friends. Breathing deeply, the young woman knew that she may as well just head on home and make sure that her sister had a good meal for when she comes home from school. That would be nice, that's for sure…

Yawning into the back of her hand, Hinata knew that tomorrow was going to be a boring day… though maybe she would be allowed to bring something to the school if her father knew that it would be for her grade. Besides family traditions, school was important to the man as it was with her mother… it couldn't be that bad right?

* * *

"Alright, but choose carefully Hinata. You know which items are not to leave the house and what items can." Said a man with tanned skin, white eyes and long brown hair. He wore a kimono that looked like went out of style at least a hundred years ago but he was a man of tradition. Wasn't the best answer but it was something, now all she had to do was pick something from the storage shed where they kept some of their oldest artifacts and then she would have something for school. This was going to be perfect though she hoped that it would be old enough for her class.

Making her way to the shed, Hinata wondered what would be old enough for her to take to school, but at the same time young enough that it wouldn't break as soon as she touched it or even picked it up into her hands. It would be annoying if it broke as soon as her fingers grazed the object that she was going to take with her to school.

Looking around carefully, Hinata wondered why the shed was so far off the property… it did seem rather odd though she figured that it was because the property was so far away from town and no one ever bothered to come here unless they were interested in a history lesson of the shrine and how it came to be. It did seem rather odd, that was for sure though Hinata never did question why that was and knew that there was no point in trying to do anything about it since she didn't really have any say in what she was to do about this place since it wasn't even hers… yet.

Breathing deeply the young woman made her way down the dirt path as she made her way toward the shed and tilted her head to the side as she wondered why she felt something… strange about this place. _'Maybe it was all in my head… there shouldn't be anything wrong about this place…'_ thought Hinata as she shook her head and made her way toward the shed and started to unlock the gate. Thankful that the lock was a keypad since they had given up on trying to use a lock and key since someone kept on losing it in the past.

Once the door opened, the young woman squinted her eyes as she tried to see in the darkness before flipping the switch. Thankful that there had been a light placed in the shed, it would have been a nightmare trying to find anything in this place. Heck, it was a nightmare just trying to find her way to her room sometimes and it really got annoying sometimes.

Looking around, Hinata tried to think on finding something that would really wow someone in class, or at least get her a good grade. Smiling brightly, Hinata knew that she would find something that would give her some kind of grade, even a passing one would be nice that was for sure. Breathing deeply, the young woman stretched her arms above her head as she tried to think on what it would be that would give her any kind of grade.

Everything that she walked by didn't really scream 'passing grade' or grade at all for that matter. Sighing softly, the young woman didn't think that she would find anything that would give her any idea as to what would be good enough to get her any kind of mark for class. Frowning, the young woman had a feeling that it wouldn't matter what kind of object that she brought to class, that it would be nothing compared to how anyone else's artifact. Taking a deep breath, the young woman knew that she would still have to at least try to bring in something for class, maybe it would still be worth something… It had to be worth at least a B then she would be happy for that even if it isn't an A+…

Shaking her head, Hinata's light lavender coloured eyes looked around as she tried to find anything that would give her some kind of idea as to what she could bring… So far, all she could find were swords, shields, arrows and a few broken shards that she figured were statues at some point from the way some of them had been curved. Otherwise, she didn't know what they were and knew that she couldn't really bring any of these with her… There was no way that it would have given her a passing grade, there was just no way that she would get a passing grade from any of these things…

Soon, she made it to the back of the shed and frowned a little when she noticed a vase. It was a vase that she's never noticed before. Her father never mentioned this vase before so… did that mean that it was safe to take out of the shed and bring it to her school for her to use? She hoped that would be the case since it was the only thing interesting for her to take to school at the moment.

As she walked closer to the vase, Hinata couldn't help but notice more and more about the vase. It was lavender; it was decorated with swirls of blue, gold and crimson. In a way, she found it to be rather strange to have those colours but at the same time, she felt that it worked perfectly together… almost like waves crashing upon the sands at the beach, that was what the blue and gold made her think about… The crimson though, it somehow made her think of the setting sun over the ocean. She didn't know what drew her to the vase, but she knew that it was perfect for class.

Smiling to herself, Hinata carefully made her way to the table that the vase resided on and looked a little more closely at it. Now that she was a bit closer, she also noticed that it was large, almost as if it was some kind of urn that would be used to place someone's ashes in. Tilting her head, the young woman made her way to the vase and looked inside… She didn't really see anything… _'What was this used for…?'_ thought Hinata before shrugging her shoulders and carefully reached out and lifted the vase in her hands, it didn't feel heavy, in fact it felt very light and still very strong.

"Almost as if it's brand new…" whispered Hinata.

Shaking her head, the young woman held the vase as close as she could, carefully running her hand over the vase as she tried to feel if maybe there was some kind of crack in it. Though so far she hadn't felt or found anything no matter if it was through touch or sight. Nothing came to mind though as to why it would be damaged if it's never been touched let alone fallen. Smiling gently, the young woman ran her palm over the rim of the vase only to hiss in pain as she felt a sharp edge cutting her palm.

Lifting her palm up, Hinata saw a clean cut and a small trickle of blood fell from her palm and into the vase. She didn't know how it could have cut her; she didn't see any sharp edges only to frown a little. It seemed that there was a tiny chip in the vase, sharp enough to have cut her skin.

"How could I have not seen that…?" asked Hinata, not really expecting an answer from anyone. Giggling softly, the young woman started to walk out of the shed, knowing that she would have to hurry up and made her way toward her home though she wasn't sure if she should hold it while going to school, or if she should carefully wrap it in her bag and carry it to school just so it wouldn't break. She couldn't really be sure of it, though what she did know was that she would have to be careful with it so it wouldn't break on her before she got to school, or before she got home.

As she walked, the young woman hummed a soft tune, something that her mother used to sing to her when she was a little girl. Taking a deep breath, Hinata wondered if maybe her mother could teach her the other songs that she knew… It was odd, her mother was once a renowned singer and her father was a businessman at the time. They met once by chance in a café and now they were happily married and with two children, Hinata herself, and her little sister Hanabi. Everything was confusing that they would be attracted to each other though at the moment she didn't mind it all that much, so long as they were happy than so was she.

Breathing deeply, the young woman wondered if people would even notice the vase in the first place, after all… she was pretty much invisible most of the time. The only people to notice her at school were the few friend's that she did have. Otherwise, no one really noticed her because she was normally so quite that no one even noticed her, she was even marked absent once because of that. Everything was crazy at school though at least she did have some friend's; even if it wasn't many she was happy…

Though it would be nice if the guys would talk to her… or, at least talk to her face instead of speaking to her while looking at her chest. Just thinking about it caused the young woman to hold the vase a little closer to her body, it always made her nervous when a guy spoke to her, well, one that was trying to ask her out who, also just so happened to be staring at her breasts instead of her face to ask her. That was the only thing that annoyed her to no end; it made her feel like some kind of object rather than a person. Is it too much to ask for, to have a guy to like her for her instead of her curves?

_'Maybe it is too much to ask for, men don't care about women, at least there are very few that care about the woman instead of her assets…'_ she thought with a sad yet soft sigh before she looked up at the sky, noticing that it was starting to get a little darker out. Sighing softly, Hinata knew that she should hurry up and get on home before her father started to get worried about her and send one of the guards out to come and get her.

Suddenly, there was a cold gust of wind blowing past her, causing the young woman to shiver from the cold. Though there was something odd about this wind, it almost seemed… dark and sinister. Looking around, Hinata tried to find the source of this wind, knowing that it couldn't be natural; there was no way that it could be real and natural wind. There was just no way that it could be real.

Shaking her head, Hinata tried to run, maybe if she just hurried toward her home that this wind would leave her alone. There was just no way she was going to stay in this forest now, she had to hurry unless whatever was causing this wind would come after her, she didn't know what it was but it was frightening all the same. Soon, there stood someone on the path. He wore nothing but black… Black pants, black shirt, black jacket and black boots. His hair was white and his eyes were green like jades, more so than her friend Sakura's.

"At last, I've found you…" whispered the man as he slowly started to walk toward her. Hinata gulped a bit and took steps back, hoping that she could get away from him. Whoever this man was, he wanted something from her, though what that something would be she didn't know. This guy had to be some kind of nut job if he was looking for her and of course wanted something from her. There was no way that she was going to stick around to find out what it was that he wanted. She had to get away and fast before anything happened to her.

Turning on her heels, Hinata ran back into the forest as fast as she could. She had to get away, running and running was all the young woman did. It seemed that no matter where she would hide, she didn't think that this mysterious person would find her… only to be discovered with him standing on the tree and giving her some kind of creepy grin upon his face. Staring with wide eyes, the young woman screamed and ran faster and faster.

Just what the hell was he?! There was no way that a normal human would be able to stand upon a tree without using his hands to support himself but standing on it like he would the ground. It just wasn't possible! Eyes wide, Hinata ran and hid once again, hoping that she could catch her breath, all she wanted was to get away and somehow find another way back home so she could be safe by the protection of her home. Yet, it seemed that he wanted her to go deeper and deeper into the forest…

Turning her head from side to side, Hinata tried to find any sign of him, the mystery man was nowhere in sight. That had to mean something right? Unless he was just toying with her before he did… whatever it was that he was going to do. She feared that he was going to rape her or something so much worse. Breathing deeply, Hinata tried to get herself to relax, knowing that if she panicked too much then she really was doomed for she wouldn't be able to think clearly and that would be her own downfall before she could get on home to be safe.

Setting the vase down, Hinata tried checking her pockets, thinking that maybe she could use her cellphone while she still had the chance to call for help… only to remember that she had left it at home because she wasn't expecting any of this to happen. Crap, she was doomed after all… She wasn't going to get home at this rate, she would die in this forest and no one would find out, he may end up taking her body somewhere to do whatever he pleased.

Gasping out a little squeak, the young woman looked up and stared with horror in her eyes. Standing on the trunk of the tree like a sidewalk, was the black clad man as he smirked down at her. "No matter where you hide, you will never escape me…" said the man with a chuckle before he started to walk toward her, Hinata of course just did what she could do… she ran as fast as her legs could carry her at the time.

Running as fast as she could, Hinata tried to find another place, a sacred place that she could hide in. Whatever this man was, he held some kind of demonic aura around him causing her fear to rise all the more. She knew that this man couldn't be human, that he was some kind of monster that didn't care about anyone's lives but himself and to do as he wanted. Looking around, the blue haired woman had hoped that she would be able to find a way to get out of this mess. Shaking her head, Hinata hadn't been able to see anything that could give her any kind of clue as to where she could hide that would keep her safe, nothing came to mind for her and she feared that because of that, this man, monster… whatever he was, would kill her no matter where she hid.

"Why keep running? You will be perfect for my master… all he wants is you to live…" said the man as his voice echoed through the forest. Hinata didn't like the sound of that, it almost made it sound like she was going to be some kind of slave, which of course she was going to have to say hell no to that. No matter what, she wouldn't live that kind of life, after all, slaves are never treated with any kind of respect and it annoyed her to no end to how some people treated people…

Soon, Hinata tripped over a root causing her to yelp as the case flew from her hand and shattered once it hit the ground. Hinata stared with wide eyes; she knew that this was how she would die… If she was used as a slave, then she wouldn't survive, for she would shatter inside, both emotionally and mentally. Looking down at the ground, the young woman knew that she was doomed. Her eyes started to fill with tears as she started to cry…

"Please… someone help me… I don't want to die; I don't want to be some kind of slave for a monster." Hinata cried softly, not wanting to live that kind of life. The only thing that she wanted was to live a normal life, graduate and have a family after taking over the family shrine from her father. This wasn't what she wanted though, but then again who does? Who wanted to be a slave, to be killed no matter what it was that she did. Looking over her shoulder, Hinata saw the man slowly making his way toward her, a creepy smile on his face as he made his way toward her.

"How does it feel woman? The game has finally ended and now, play time is over. You'll be coming with me to my master so you can… help us with this human infested world." Why did he say humans like he wasn't one? Oh wait, he wasn't because he didn't have a normal human aura… Though if that was the case why did he say it with such distaste? Like he hated them with a passion and of course with all his cold stone heart? Hinata wanted to ask what he meant but his smirk stopped her… at least for the moment. "Once we have what we want, then we should be able to remove humans from the planet and rule the world like we should have all those years ago after he was sealed away."

"He? Who is he? And what makes you think that I'd help you?!" shouted Hinata.

"The Crimson Fox, he had been sealed away six hundred years ago… It was so much fun to watch his face as he was sealed away, the horror, the fear… Oh, it was just so enjoyable even if I could only watch from afar." Said the man with a smirk, he was making it sound like The Crimson Fox was a good guy, but why was that? Wasn't The Crimson Fox a bad guy? He did kill all of those people didn't he? Or was it some kind of misunderstanding?

Shaking her head, Hinata narrowed her eyes as she said "what makes you think that I would help you anyway?!" The man laughed, it was creepy the way he was laughing at her and knew that she wouldn't like the answer that he was going to give her… Soon, he stopped walking as a gust of heated wind started to swirl around the area. What was going on? Looking around, the young woman turned away from the man as he saw his eyes widen ahead of him. What Hinata saw was the wind swirling around the broken vase, a thick crimson and green fog started to swirl with the wind, causing something to form.

Hinata had no idea what was happening, at first she thought that maybe the man was doing this but then again, why would it be over where the vase was instead of over her? That wouldn't have made any kind of sense to her at all. The fog started to form into something else; she wasn't sure what it was though it started from the ground up. On the ground was a pair of straw sandal clad feet and slowly starting to form its way upward. Eyes widening, Hinata watched as the fog kept on trying to form something… though what that was she wasn't sure what it would be…

As the fog made its way upward, Hinata saw a pair of black umanori hakama. It was something that she had seen in history books. It was rather odd to see something that old in front of her though at the moment she didn't care. The fog kept on forming slowly upward, the hakama seemed like it had made its way up to someone's waist but was still going. At this person's waist was a sword concealed in a black sheath with swirls of orange around it. The sword looked different compared to other weapons that she has seen in her life…

Soon, Hinata had started to see the orange jacket with the black sleeves of this person's kimono. The sleeves had orange flames on the sleeves and she didn't know why but it made her think that the flames were dancing… Next, she had noticed that this person was male since the kimono jacket was opened revealing his chest. At that time, she noticed that this man had swirls on his chest that made her think of the wind like in the cartoons she saw as a child.

Turning her gaze to his hands, she saw orange gloves that wrapped around his middle finger and disappeared into his sleeves, and on his hands, she could faintly see the weird flame-like markings on his hands though not as well as the markings on his chest… odd though she had a feeling that was what the gloves were for, to hide those markings. Soon, the fog started to form his face, he was handsome alright… whisker markings on his face. Spiky blonde hair with a red ponytail, though what else she noticed were the orange and black tipped fox eras atop of his head and the swaying orange and black tipped tails behind him…

It was The Crimson Fox from the history books! He was real!? How did that work and how was he standing in front of her and most of all… was he…? Tilting her head, Hinata saw that his eyes were closed and that his breathing was slow and even… That was when, she realised something… "He's asleep!?"


	3. A Fox's Power

Hinata couldn't believe this… The Crimson Fox, a demon of legend in her family had really been sealed away in a vase and not only that, but he had been freed after all this time and he was sound asleep? His eyes were closed, his breathing soft, even and slow as he slept. He looked down right peaceful, not even aware of what was going on around him at the moment. Tilting her head, the young woman didn't know what she was to do about him though what she did know was that she couldn't do anything to wake him up since she did, after all still have a demon after her for some unknown reason.

"Who would have thought, The Crimson Fox would be asleep… It makes me wonder if he was forced into this slumber or he grew bored and fell asleep after a hundred years or so." Laughed the demon as he made his way toward Hinata.

Hinata just stared at him; she couldn't help but stare at his face. If he was really over a hundred years old, why did he look like he was seventeen like she was? None of this made sense to her though she wasn't going to complain much about it. The only thing that mattered to her was to get the hell away from here before this demon got a hold of her and killed her or whatever it was that he wanted to do with her. At the moment, the young woman didn't really care what it was; the only thing that she cared about was to get the hell away from this area and head on home before this demon grabbed her.

The young woman knew that she had to hurry up and get herself up and run as fast as she could. There would be no way that she was going to risk staying here any longer than she needed to or in this case she should since she knew that she would be captured at this point. Pushing herself up, Hinata tried to get away as fast as she could; she had to run away while the demon was at least distracted by the Crimson Fox's release from his seal. Looking over her shoulder, the young woman saw that he was indeed looking at him for a moment so that could give her some kind of advantage so she could get away from him and head on home.

Though it seemed that the demon had started to catch on as to what she was trying to do. Or in this case, hoping to do for he had grabbed a hold of her ankle and yanked her back. Hinata screamed out for help, though she didn't really expect any kind of help from anyone in the first place for The Crimson Fox was still out cold and didn't look like he was going to wake up any time soon.

The demon had managed to grab a hold of Hinata's body a little firmer when he held her close to his chest. He smirked when he held her in his arms, close to his chest. "You will be so very useful to my master for when we rule this land." What did she have anything to do with ruling the land? She didn't really understand it though there was something that she wouldn't allow to happen. Right now, Hinata had to think of something that she could do to get away from this place.

Thinking of only one thing that she could do, Hinata kicked the demon in the groin, the only movement that she could do with her body in the first place. Of course, the demon was not very happy with what she had done, he howled in pain before he shouted "you little bitch! I'll teach you!" he then threw her, hoping that falling to the ground would knock her out. What he hadn't expected was to put so much force into his throw, for when he tossed Hinata, he had thrown her right into The Crimson Fox.

Hinata yelped from the shock as her body slammed into The Crimson Fox and fell on the ground with him, her face buried in his chest as she let out a soft moan. "That hurt…" she whimpered softly before looking up and rubbed her face. The demon growled as he started to walk toward Hinata, causing her to scream and bury her face in the sleeping demon's chest. She prayed for someone, anyone to save her right now. "Please, please someone save me!" cried out Hinata before everything seemed to go into a blur.

The demon had reached out for the blue haired young woman before something shot out toward the demon. When she turned her head, Hinata blinked in shock when she saw something stabbing the demon's shoulder… it looked like… a tail? Frowning a bit, the young woman was about to voice what it was that was on her lips until she felt something wrap around her waist. She wanted to scream, wanted to yelp in surprise but sadly it seemed that it died in her throat when she felt the wind starting to pick up and swirl around her and the body of The Crimson Fox.

Closing her eyes, Hinata tried to focus on breathing, the wind was fast, harsh, and deadly, she felt like the wind was sucked out of her lungs for a brief moment until she felt the wind start to lighten up around her, in fact it seemed like it was trying to calm her down for some reason. Like it was the soothing caress of a friend or a lover of some sort. She wasn't sure what it was, though prayed that it was some kind of good sign for her.

Suddenly, Hinata found herself to be standing… Okay, now that was a little odd, for she knew that she had been lying on the ground with The Crimson Fox and now she was standing and felt someone… holding… her…

Slowly, she turned her head and looked up at the man that was holding her, noticing just how much taller he was compared to her. Staring at the man, The Crimson Fox, Hinata gasped in shock for she saw the fox man's eyes slowly start to open revealing a pair of blue eyes. The demon looked around for a brief moment after his blue eyes fully opened only to frown in confusion and say something in a language that she did not understand.

"So, you have awakened Crimson Fox." Said the other demon with a growl, only to say something in another language as well. She figured that demons could talk with this mysterious language though she hoped that The Crimson Fox would be on her side.

The blonde haired demon pushed Hinata to stand behind him, whatever the other demon had said had caused him to growl and go into what she assumed was a protective stance for he held onto the hilt of his sword and his tails were spread out as if trying to shield her from any kind of harm that would want to present itself to her. He had to be a good guy right? He just had to be the hero if he was going too far to protect her from this danger right? Right?

"So Crimson Fox, you have finally awakened and your power with you. Now, I'll have to make sure that you do not get in my way even if you do not understand what it is I'm saying." The Crimson Fox's answer was only a growl. It seemed that he may not understand the modern language now but it seemed that he could still sense what it was that the demon was after or, he heard it from the man himself when he spoke to The Crimson Fox earlier. Hinata didn't know what it was that was said before and she had a feeling that she didn't want to know about.

"You will stay out of the way fox, I will have the woman." The fox just growled all the more, muttering more in that strange language of his before thrust his hand outward and let out what looked like a burst of flames. Hinata was surprised, for when he had thrust his hands out; she could have sworn that she saw his arm light up a bright red. How was that even possible? She had a feeling that she would never figure it out though at the moment, she didn't really care. The only thing that she cared about was to make sure that she got home safe or that this was all just a really bad dream.

Either way, she didn't care and prayed that it was the latter. That she really was in bed and sleeping in her room and that she had just been knocked out by some kind of object. Yet, for some reason she felt like there was no way that this could have been a dream, that this was indeed as real as life itself.

"You bastard!" shouted the demon before rushing forward and went to slash at The Crimson Fox. Though the blonde and red haired demon easily dodged out of the way, flipping through the air before he landed on his feet and thrust out his other hand and his chest started to glow green as wind seemed to blast from his palm and hit the demon in the chest. It was rather surprising that he could use fire and wind though she wasn't going to complain about it at the moment.

Tilting her head, the young woman just stared and watched as the two demons seemed to go at it. The Crimson Fox threw punch after punch at the demon. While the evil man just smirked as he dodged them, only to hiss in pain when one of the blonde's claws scratched his face. The demon narrowed his eyes as he said "hard to believe that you are still powerful from being sealed away for six hundred years." The Crimson Fox though just tilted his head as if trying to understand what it was that he had just said. Rolling his eyes, the demon mumbled something in that weird language, which, Hinata believed to be some kind of translation.

"You should join us… you have so much power and we could use that power to join us… Ah yes, I keep forgetting that you do not understand what I am saying." Laughed the demon before he said what he wanted to say in that other language. Wouldn't it have been easier for there to be some kind of spell to get The Crimson Fox to understand what it was that they were saying in the first place?

The Crimson Fox though seemed to have other plans for he rushed forward and grabbed a sword before jumping through the trees. In fact, it almost seemed like he had disappeared for Hinata didn't see him anymore. What was going on? Did he just leave her or was it something else? She wasn't sure what it was though she had a feeling that there would be something big happening to her and she knew that there would be something big happening. The demon growled before he started to rush toward Hinata. "You are mine!" shouted the demon, only to scream when he felt something slash into his back.

Hinata gasped in shock as she saw the demon just seeming to fall over. Though that was when she saw a slash in the man's back, what the hell happened just now? That made no sense until she remembered that the fox demon had disappeared in the trees. Had he done this or was it something else that had attacked him? Hinata couldn't really be sure though she had a feeling that there was something else that would be coming and that it would take this demon down before it took her down.

The demon growled as he tried to break free of what it was that was attacking him. Though he knew that The Crimson Fox was behind it somehow, knew that this had to be one of his abilities. He had heard that people, no matter they be demon or human, they would have been sliced into bits and pieces within seconds… yet so far he was only getting slashed at, his body was still intact. The demon narrowed his eyes as he tried to get himself to stand back up onto his feet only to fall back over when a slash across his back formed once again. When he looked up, he saw The Crimson Fox standing in front of the blue haired woman once again.

"Who would have thought you'd still be this powerful… Yes, your abilities have weakened over the course of six hundred years but otherwise you are still powerful. I wonder what you could be capable of if you had the greatest power known to man and demon alike." Said the demon with a smirk. Soon, the demon started to laugh before he looked over at the fox demon and Hinata once more. It seemed that he was still trying to figure out what it was that he should do to stop the demon.

Hinata looked up at The Crimson Fox as she wondered what it was that the demon would be planning to take out the demon that wanted to bring her to… wherever it was that he wanted to take her away to. Soon, she had heard the fox man's muttering something in that weird language of his before he held out his sword, getting ready to kill this demon before ending this war with whatever kind of power that he had left in his body. Just how much power can one man have? Or in this case, how much power could one demon have in his body? Was there any kind of limit or was it like an ever flowing river that never had an end but just kept on flowing for eternity…?

"What do you plan to do? You had so much power and used it once before against humans and now… you refuse to help your kind…" growled the demon, okay now that confused the blue haired young woman. What did he mean by that? Was there more to the demon that was protecting her than meets the eye or was he just trying to psyche him out or something?

Shaking her head, Hinata held onto the blonde demon's robes in her small hands, causing The Crimson Fox to turn his head and stare at her for a brief moment. His eyes were so blue, they reminded her of the ocean, something behind his eyes told her that he was going to keep her safe. Even though he didn't understand a thing that she was saying or what was being said around him he knew one thing, and that was to protect her from whatever this demon was really after.

Turning his gaze back onto the demon ahead of him, the fox demon narrowed his blue eyes before his grip over his sword tightened, his demonic energy was starting to surge around him as if he was building up all the energy that his body could muster for this one attack. Whatever it was, she didn't know though she had a feeling that it was big.

Breathing deeply, The Crimson Fox held the sword near his shoulder, in front of his chest and the blade pointing away from his shoulder as it pointed toward the ground. Hinata had no idea what it was that he was planning, though hoped and prayed that this would be powerful enough to stop this demon. Looking over his shoulder, the young woman knew that she would have to let go of him if he was going to fight this monster even though she didn't want to do that at the moment but knew that it would have to be for the best at the moment.

The demon shook his head, as if saying that this attack or move wouldn't have been enough to stop him, let alone kill him. She wasn't sure why she was thinking about that from this demon's stare and stance but at the moment she just prayed that it would give the demon a clue that hunting down anyone was wrong and that there was no point in trying to kidnap her for no reason what so ever.

Then, that was when everything seemed to have happened in a blur. At that moment, The Crimson Fox swung his sword and a blade projected itself from the swords blade. It was green and flew through the sky and burst into flames. Hinata had never seen anything like this before in her entire life and now this was the moment that she was waiting for. Though, would it kill the demon or would it just wound him? Either way, she didn't know and had a feeling that it would be a bit of both maybe or there was something more to this than what meets the eye.

The demon's eyes widened in shock, Hinata figured that maybe he hadn't expected this attack coming towards him. That had been a bit of a shock for her as well though she wasn't going to complain. The blade soared through the air before meeting its target. Hinata almost puked as she watched the blade of wind fly toward the demon, before it sliced him in half. The demon stared at the two of them with wide eyes before smirking. "Do you think you've won!?" he said with a cocky laugh… only to stop when he saw the weird smile on the fox demon's face. "Why are you smiling like that?"

Turning to look up at the fox demon, she wondered why he was smiling like that. Soon, she saw him lifting up his hand, palm facing outward before tilting her head at him. "What are you doing?" asked Hinata. Soon, he held up five fingers, okay that was odd as well.

Soon, he dropped down his pinkie finger; the demon that was about to lay on the ground just tilted his head as he slowly started to descend to the ground. The Crimson Fox smirked a little more as he soon dropped his ring finger as his grin started to widen. Hinata just frowned a little more as she tried to think on what it was that he was trying to do. Tilting her head, the young woman asked "what are you doing?" He turned to her for a moment, dropping his middle finger before he said something in that other language. Though she wondered what it was that he had in store for this demon though didn't think that it would matter what he had in mind for the demon had been sliced down from his left shoulder to his right hip.

Then, the fox demon started to drop his thumb as he chuckled a little. Like he was in the middle of some kind of personal joke. The demon growled as he tried to put himself together again… only to notice something. His eyes widened when he felt like his body was starting to get warm… No, not warm but hot! What the hell was going on? Did it have something to do with that weird attack that had sliced through him or was it something else that was doing it? He couldn't allow this to happen!

Yet, before he could even get himself together The Crimson Fox soon dropped his index finger and as soon as his finger had reached his palm, the demon screamed as his body combusted into flames. He screamed and tried to roll around on the ground hoping to put out the flames. Though what the fox demon said made the demon glare. "Just laugh it up now fox, for this is merely a clone of myself that I created just so I could obtain the girl… Now, I will return these memories to my original self and we shall get the girl!"

Hinata tilted her head to the side as she tried to think on what it was that this demon was talking about. What did he or his master want from her in the first place? None of this was making any kind of sense to her and it was really starting to bother her so much.

The demon's body soon started to turn into ashes as his body finally burned itself out. The young woman just stared at the demon's remains, wondering if any more demons would come after her, if she would be okay or if she would be able to protect herself from all of this that is happening. There would be no way that she would be able to keep fighting like this day in and day out, mostly because she had no real sense of training in how to use her so called 'sacred' powers… Shaking her head, the young woman looked up at the fox demon as she said "thank you" hoping that he would at least understand that though… he just turned his head and stared at her for a moment, his head tilting to the side as he frowned a little.

Great, he still didn't understand her…

Suddenly, the fox demon grabbed Hinata's wrist, dropping his sword in the process as he just stared at her. His blue eyes full of questions and curiosity trying to figure out what it was about the world that he was in now. The time that he had no information about and he wanted to know so badly. Hinata feared that he was going to hurt her that he was going to attack her or worse kill her. Hinata gulped a little, for The Crimson Fox had pinned her to a tree. His red ponytail flowing in the wind as it blew past them.

"What… what are you doing?" asked Hinata, her eyes wide and filled with fear. She didn't know what it was that he was going to do and it had her frightened terribly. Gulping a little bit, the young woman tilted her head as she sniffled a little saying "please, stop… go away… You saved me from that demon are you going to hurt me now?"

He didn't answer her… no, more like he just kept on staring at her like nothing had happened or that what she said had meant nothing to him. Then again, it wasn't like he could understand her in the first place right? He could only speak in that weird language of his and only understand others that know it as well. Hinata sniffled a little and started to feel tears building up in her eyes as she tried to get her fear to leave her alone. He whispered something to her, even though Hinata couldn't understand the fox demon in front of her, the way he said it almost sounded like he was sorry about whatever it was that he was going to do.

Suddenly, Hinata felt him pressing his lips against hers, causing her lavender white eyes staring up at him in shock, not sure what he was doing though what she did know was that this was really freaking her out. Hinata could feel her heart beating quickly in her chest, her blood rushing to her cheeks and her body starting to sweat like crazy, why was she feeling like this?! Once he pulled back, he stared at her with a big grin on his face. Hinata just stared at him, not sure what he was smiling about though she felt dizzy all of a sudden.

"Hello Hinata, it's nice to finally understand what you have been saying all that time!" said the fox demon with a big grin on his face and a chuckle.

After that, Hinata fell over, fainting from the shock of everything that had happened. From the battle, the fox demon saving her, then kissing her and speaking in natural Japanese… just what was going on?!

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**here is chapter three, sorry if it wasn't any longer, had a little trouble thinking on how Naruto should fight since some of his powers had dimmed a bit from lack of use though he will regain his full power later. Now, what should I call that attack he used with his sword? Stirring Flame, or Foxfire Tempest? If anyone else has any ideas send them in for the name of that attack or if you have ideas for other attacks, later.**


	4. Demon's Plan

Hinata groaned softly, she didn't know what was going on… had it all been a dream for her or was it something else? She wasn't sure though there was no way that a demon had chased her in the forest that surrounded her home and of course a weird blonde fox demon-like man standing in front of her and protecting her after coming out of a smashed vase. It just didn't seem possible for all of that to be even remotely true. Though she prayed that the whole thing had been nothing more than a dream for if it had been, then that would have meant that she had lost her first kiss…

Or that she was losing her mind in the first place…

_"Hey, you going to wake up?"_ said a voice, making Hinata curious as to who was speaking to her. Who was trying to talk to her? Most of all though, what did they mean by 'wake up'? Wasn't she already awake or was she just dreaming that as well? She couldn't really be sure what it was though she wasn't going to complain about it for the time being for there wouldn't really be much of a point of it anyway.

Hinata didn't know what it was that had really happened earlier… she didn't really want that to have been possible or to have been real. Frowning softly, Hinata shook her head; maybe if she stayed asleep there would be nothing for her to worry about at the moment.

_"Yo, wake up Hinata-chan! If you don't wake up you may catch a cold, you've been sleeping for a while now…"_

What was that voice talking about? How could she catch a cold just from sleeping? It wasn't winter anyway so there was no way that she could catch a cold right? Let alone be asleep for that matter. Breathing deeply, the young woman just wanted all of this to go away, just wanted all of this to end for her and her just getting home and pretending that all of this hasn't happened in the first place.

Suddenly, Hinata felt something warm on the side of her face… but why? She didn't see anyone there for that matter so there couldn't be any way for her to feel something so warm on the side of her face. Tilting her head, Hinata tried to speak, only to find out that her voice did not work… Frowning a little, Hinata tried to speak but no matter what she did, her vocal cords just did not want to work for her so maybe… she had strep throat or something along those lines. She couldn't really be sure what it was but knew that she had to get this voice to leave her alone… somehow…

_"Come on Hinata, you gotta wake up, it wasn't that bad was it? Did I do something wrong to have caused you to faint like that?"_ said the voice, causing Hinata to be curious as to what the voice was talking about. Did she really faint or was that just something the voice wanted to say just for the sake of saying something for the hell of it? She couldn't really be sure of it though she knew that there had to be something going on right now so, if that was the case did that mean that she was really asleep?

_"Come on already Hinata! Just wake up!"_ shouted the voice, which of course was a bit of a jolt to Hinata for if there was one thing she hated, it was being yelled at…

Blinking slowly, the young woman started to slowly open her eyes before she started to look around. What the hell was going on in the first place? How was she here? Wait… frowning a little, the blue haired woman looked up and blinked slowly when she saw a man standing there… it was the Crimson Fox from the book! If he was standing here… did that mean that everything really happened? Including… the kiss?!

Blushing darkly, Hinata felt a little light headed, in fact she felt like she was going to faint again. "Ah! Please don't faint Hinata!" Hinata blinked slightly, just how did he know her name in the first place? After all, she hadn't told him though what else bothered her was how he had suddenly learned how to speak her language when before all he could say was that weird language before and now… he could speak properly and not to mention, he knew her name… Just what was going on in the first place? It just didn't make a lick of sense to her in the least and it was just causing her to become confused all the more.

"You… how do you know…?" asked Hinata, unable to finish her sentence. The blonde haired man blinked his blue eyes at her for a brief moment before he let out a soft chuckle. Just what was it that made this whole thing so funny? It didn't make any kind of sense to her though that is to be expected since after all, none of this was making any kind of sense since she had just been attacked by a demon and saved by another…

"I'm sorry about that Hinata, but that is how I learn… Think of it as a transfer but of some knowledge. I didn't think I would learn the natural way since you also didn't know what language I was speaking nor would a lot of people but demons." Calmly said the blonde haired man before scratching the back of his head and blinked at her… "Also, I am really sorry though… I had just kissed you out of the blue but I was desperate to figure out what had been happening since I had been sealed away for… six hundred years…" he sighed softly before looking up at the sky, as did Hinata. It was dark out and that was when she knew that her family had to be worried about her right now.

"Wait… does that mean you know everything I know?" Hinata asked with a hint of a blush on her face. If he knew everything, did that mean about some things that he shouldn't know no matter what that was? She hoped that he didn't know any of that; there were after all some things that needed to stay in a girl's mind and not to be just known by any guy.

"No, just things about this time and how long I have been sealed. I didn't think you would know but it was rather surprising that I've been known as 'The Crimson Fox' but that may be because of my red ponytail." Said the fox demon before he let out a soft chuckle before saying "anyway, I guess I should tell you my real name since, after all it wasn't recorded in the books right?"

Hinata just nodded to his question, it hadn't been recorded, no one knew his real name and it only made sense that she would know his name since he did, know hers even if it was through that weird kiss transfer thing or whatever it was. Breathing deeply, Hinata tried to push herself up only to wince, her ankle hurt like crazy and she didn't know why… at least until she started to remember. She had been tripped by a root when she was still holding the vase; it must have sprained her ankle… great… Wait, if that had been the case how come she could still stand before hand unless it was because of all of the adrenaline rushing through her that caused her to forget about it all together…

Shaking her head, Hinata tried to push herself up again only to blink when she saw the Crimson Fox kneeling in front of her, his back toward her. "Get on… I'll carry you home." He said with a calm tone to his voice. Frowning a little, Hinata didn't want to burden him with her trouble or problems but… he was offering so it couldn't be that bad right? Shaking her head, the young woman carefully wrapped her arms around his neck and made sure that she was holding on tightly to him. The blonde demon wrapped his arms under her legs before he pushed himself up onto his feet and started to walk off. "I didn't think the world would have changed so much compared to before I was sealed away…"

"I know… I bet it must be quite a shock to you." Hinata whispered softly.

"Yes… it is…"

"You never did tell me your name…"

"Oh right, just call me Naruto." He said with a chuckle before looking over his shoulder. Hinata frowned a little as she thought about his name… it was a name that she didn't think would have been very common six hundred years ago though she didn't think that it would have mattered either way. Smiling, the young woman laid her head on his shoulder as she tried to think on everything that had happened… It all just seemed like it was a dream but if it had been a dream then of course she wouldn't have felt the fact that she was being carried…

"Naruto, what were you and that demon saying in that weird language of yours…?" asked Hinata, feeling a little sleepy about everything that was happening around her.

"That weird language I guess you can say is that it's the old tongue, no one speaks it anymore but demons I figured. Anyway, what we were saying, I cannot tell you as of yet… you may just think that it was all a dream anyway…" calmly said Naruto before he let out a soft sigh. Why did he sound so tired? He had been asleep for six hundred years, if anyone is still tired from all of that then there had to be something wrong with the person…

Yawning softly, Hinata knew that she was very tired… this whole ordeal had worn her out and she knew that she would have to do something. There had to be something wrong with this whole thing. Okay yeah, there were demons in the world and she was being carried by one… (A good one, but still a demon) Looking up at the sky, Hinata wondered what her father was going to say about this whole thing… or about the fact that she broke the vase that once held Naruto within it because of the priestess that had sealed him away in the first place.

Though it still amazed her that a demon had saved her anyway… He had to be really nice… "Naruto… what kind of powers do you have?" asked Hinata.

"I can control fire and wind. The swirls on my chest are a sign that I can control wind, while the markings on my hands are signs that I can control fire. It is rare for my kind to control two elements but it is because of my heritage." Calmly said Naruto before he started to look around, this made Hinata wonder if he was making sure that no demons were coming after them, though she couldn't really be sure if that was the case. Soon, Naruto's gaze fell onto Hinata as he smiled. "My mother was of the Crimson Fox tribe, which are a tribe of powerful fox demons that can control fire, hence, the crimson. My father was of a rare breed himself for he was from a tribe of blonde foxes though they control wind mostly. There is some old story that they can control a very rare element but it's been lost in history." Now that had her curious, what kind of element was from his father's tribe? Though it seemed that Naruto didn't know so there was no way that she could ask him… or, he knew but did not want to share. Either way, she didn't want to bother him about it. At least not at the moment…

Turning her gaze onto the nine swaying tails, Hinata frowned a little as she asked "what about your tails… do you have nine because of an inheritance?"

"Something like that… my great-grandfather, Kurama, had nine tails, but for my mother's tribe, foxes tails are a sign of how much power a fox has. My mother had at least four tails… I was born with nine and was powerful for it… I learned how to use my power thanks to my great-grandfather before he died…"

Hinata felt a little bad for Naruto; it must be rough to lose someone close like that. Holding onto him a little tighter, Hinata whispered "I'm sorry to hear that Naruto…"

"It's fine don't worry. I'm sure he's at peace…"

"Hinata!" came a loud voice, causing Hinata to blink and look up in shock. Standing there with a flashlight was her father and mother. Oh god this couldn't have looked very good. "It's a demon! Demon, let go of my daughter!" shouted Hinata's father before he rushed forward ready to punch Naruto in the face.

"Father wait! He saved my life, I was attacked!" shouted Hinata, hoping that she could talk some sense into her father. Though it seemed that he wouldn't hear any of it for he just kept on rushing forward with his fist. Upon closer inspection though, Hinata saw that there was a sutra in his hand. Before the fist could make contact with Naruto though, he managed to jump out of the way and landed on the left of the enraged man. "Father please listen, this is the Crimson Fox, I… I broke the vase by accident because a demon was after me…"

"She speaks the truth. I wish to speak to you and, we should tend to Hinata's ankle. She hurt it…" Naruto calmly said before turning to Hinata and gave her a big grin. Her father though looked like he didn't want to believe it, that this was all just some kind of lie set up to get him to let his guard down… Yet, if there was one thing that the man knew, it was that his daughter wasn't a liar in the first place. She could never lie about something like this and he knew it. Letting out a defeated sigh, he started to lead everyone inside much to his wife's shock and relief.

Naruto stared at the man's back for a moment before he started to follow; it seemed that Naruto was nervous around her father. Did he think that he was going to be resealed again? She didn't think her father could do that, there was just no way that it would happen for she had heard what had happened to the priestess that had sealed Naruto away in the first place… Closing her eyes, she whispered "my father won't seal you, I promise…" That seemed to help him relax a little, for she felt his arms relax and the muscles in his back loosen up a bit…

"So, you saved my daughter correct?" asked Hinata's father.

"Yes sir." Calmly said Naruto before walking inside and looking over at Hinata. "Where would you like me to place you Hinata?" She gave him a soft smile and told him that she wanted to lay down in the living room before pointing out the way. The blonde and red haired young man nodded before making his way to the living room and placed the young woman down on the couch and placed her ankle on a foot stool. At least it would be able to rest and relax though she knew that she should see a doctor in the morning.

"Now… tell me, what happened?"

Hinata looked up at her father and started to explain everything that she could say. Such as when she went to the shed to get something for her class, to when she left the shed and was heading home before a strange man showed up. Then of course finding out that said man, was really a demon that was after her for some strange reason, she didn't really know what it was though… she had a feeling that Naruto did for she had turned to stare at him and saw that he was still as calm as can be.

After that, she went back to facing her father and telling him what had happened. She had gone and said that she had tripped and broke the vase that Naruto had been sealed in, and how he had been released and appeared from some weird fog that formed his body… and that he had really been asleep for six hundred years so he didn't wake up right away. As soon as she had said that, her father gave a 'what the hell' kind of expression when he turned to stare at Naruto. It seemed that Naruto felt ashamed about that but he whispered "it was part of the seal… I fell asleep as soon as I disappeared into the vase…" That, of course made some sense to her, though at the same time not so much. What was the point of someone suffering if they were only going to sleep unless they slept their life away.

Then, Hinata told her father about how Naruto used wind and fire to kill the demon along with amazing sword skills before the demon died. She left out the part where Naruto kissed her, knowing that her father would only want to kill him before anything else was said and done. "Okay, so… my daughter was in trouble and you saved her. For that, I thank you but why did you not just leave?"

"Because the demons are after Hinata, and won't give up until they either get her, or die. I know this, because the demon told me of their plan." Naruto calmly said.

"Why would they tell you and how did Hinata now know this?" asked her father.

"Because he spoke in a language that has long since been forgotten." answered Naruto.

That made sense, and she was thankful that he did not mention the kiss. That would have been embarrassing… that and her father would kill Naruto for that. The tall man sighed and shook his head as he asked "what are they after? Why would they think Hinata has it?"

Everything was silent for a brief moment, Naruto looking down as he tried to think of the words that were within his mind as he replayed the words the demon said to him during the battle. Closing his eyes, Naruto calmly said "because of a legend. Legend of a powerful priestess able to give demons amazing power. The last one was the priestess that sealed me away, but she must have died before they could get her, and they waited for another to be born… Hinata is the priestess that they want for she has the power that they seek…"

"How can Hinata help them anyway? What would she have besides power?" asked her father.

"They want her heart, for her heart, has the power to give demons the power of a god…"

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**here is chapter 4, what do you think should happen for chapter 5?**


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